The 'search' for eminence

The Hindu

The 'search' for eminence
08,Mar,2019

10 words from this day's editorials with Hindi meaning

Read the words first, then the editorial: you will meet them in the text and remember them. Tap a word for its dictionary page.

Catapult (verb)

(Hurl or launch (something) /move or change suddenly or at great speed) प्रक्षेप करना

Synonyms: Propel, Launch, Hurl, Hurtle, Fling

Antonyms: Obstruct

Example: The economic downturn helped to catapult the republican candidate into the white house, because he blamed all problems on big government.

Subservience (noun)

(The condition of being less important than something else/ willingness to obey others unquestioningly.) दासता/अधीनता

Synonyms: Servility, Subordination, Submissiveness, Playing Second Fiddle

Antonyms: Freedom, Independence

Example: In order to be a good waitress, you need to be somewhat subservient as you wait on customers.

Decimate (verb)

Literally - to destroy or greatly decrease in size or number. Figuratively- drastically reduce the strength or effectiveness of (something). नुकसान पहुँचाना/प्रभावशीलता कम कर देना

Synonyms: Curtail, Dwindle, Diminish, Retrench

Antonyms: Ascend, Develop, Strengthen

Example: The people fled their homes as the fire threatened to decimate their community.

Flounder (verb)

(Struggle or stagger clumsily) जूझना

Synonyms: Struggle, Battle, Conflict, Grapple, Fight

Antonyms: Stable, Secure, Endure, Establish

Example: After it hit the iceberg, the Titanic was left to flounder in the Atlantic Ocean before it finally sank.

Lacuna (noun)

An unfilled space; a gap. अन्तराल/अभाव

Synonyms: Break, Cavity, Gap, Interim, Hiatus

Antonyms: Completeness, Excellence, Consummations

Example: As a critic it my duty to find the lacunae in the published books.

Repository (noun)

(A place where or receptacle in which things are or may be stored/A store of information or in which a particular quality may be found.) कोष/भण्डार गृह

Synonyms: Store, Storehouse, Depository; Reservoir, Repertory

Example: The bank’s repository contained hundreds of millions of dollars in cash and coins.

Transpicuous (adjective)

(Easy to perceive or detect/ easily understood) पारदर्शक/स्पष्ट

Synonyms: Transparent, Lucid, Unambiguous, Conspicuous

Antonyms: Ambiguous, Obscure, Fuzzy, Vague

Example: A system of government should be transpicuous

Dismal (adjective)

Pitifully or disgracefully bad. खराब/निराशाजनक

Synonyms: Bad, Poor, Pitiful, Disgraceful, Unsatisfactory

Antonyms: Bright, Cheerful, Happy, Intelligent, Joyful

Example: The team ended the school year with a dismal record of one win and eleven losses.

Sag (verb)

Decline to a lower level, usually temporarily. डगमगाना/कम होना

Synonyms: Falter, Weaken, Languish, Flag, Fade, Wilt, Shrivel, Wither

Antonyms: Ascend, Increase, Rise

Example: As the holiday season passed, the store’s sales started to sag.

Nonpareil (adjective)

(Having no match or equal; unrivalled.) अद्वितीय

Synonyms: Incomparable, Matchless, Unrivalled, Unparalleled, Unequalled, Peerless, Unmatched

Antonyms: Mediocre, Inferior

Example: Because the restaurant’s food is nonpareil in the city, the dining establishment has a six-month waiting list.

The editorial

Source: The Hindu · 8 Mar 2019

India's dream of translating its global economic presence into the knowledge spheres has seen mixed results. As the world's third largest economy (in purchasing power parity terms), it is odd that corresponding improvements in development indicators, especially education, are absent. In 2017, India ranked 131 in the United Nations human development index out of 188 countries. In the Times Higher Education World University Rankings of 2018, only 30 Indian higher educational institutions featured in the top 1000 and none in the top 250. In the QS World University Rankings of 2018, only 20 HEIs feature in the top 1000 and only 3 in the top 250. Evidently, India, with the third largest education system in the world after the United States of America and China, lacks the global institutional presence matching its economic status. Why this dismal (pitifully or disgracefully bad.) showing by a country of this size, talent and economic prowess (skill or expertise in a particular activity or field.) and what can we do to change things? It is widely recognized that the higher education system in India is collapsing (sagging): this is not just a problem at the top but spreads across all levels of education, school onwards. Numerous solutions have been suggested to catapult (move or change suddenly or at great speed) India's presence to the forum of the world's top ranking universities.

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Quick quiz: 5 questions on these words

Synonyms and antonyms, the way exams ask them. Answers show as you tap.

1. Synonym of Flounder

2. Synonym of Repository

3. Synonym of Nonpareil

4. Antonym of Transpicuous

5. Synonym of Decimate

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